Connacht upset Stormers in emotionally charged URC clash
MATCH REPORT: The pressure on the second-placed Stormers has increased after they suffered a 24-33 defeat to Connacht in their United Rugby Championship Round 15 encounter at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday.
With Leinster, Ulster and the Bulls breathing down their necks, the Capetonians needed a win to ease the nerves. Instead, they failed to pick up any log points in a crucial encounter.
The result also means that they missed out on a big opportunity to apply more pressure on Glasgow Warriors at the top of the standings.
It was an emotionally charged day in Cape Town as the Stormers and their fans paid tribute to team manager Chippie Solomon, who passed away last weekend.
Head coach John Dobsoon and star flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu were in tears before kick-off. It was also a day when the franchise said goodbye to hooker Scarra Ntubeni, who was playing his last game.
The Stormers had to absorb the early pressure from Connacht, and they were also reduced to 14 men in the fifth minute when Deon Fourie was yellow-carded for a head-on-head tackle.
A couple of minutes later, the crowd was silent when Shamus Hurley-Langton dived over in the corner for the opening try of the game. There was a lengthy TMO review to see if he was in touch, but there was no clear evidence.
Sam Gilbert also landed a tricky conversion in the rain for a 7-0 lead,
Despite being a man down, the Stormers showed patience on attack, and they were rewarded when Evan Roos got the ball from a wonderful offload from Ntubeni before racing away for a try.
The rest of the first half turned into an arm wrestle with plenty of off-the-ball scuffles and mistakes brought on by the physicality, attrition and nerves.
The Capetonians had the final say just before the break, with Feinberg-Mngomezulu landing a long-range penalty to add to his conversion earlier on.
At half-time, it was 10-7 to the Stormers.
It was the perfect start to the second half for the Stormers with a line-out variation putting them on the front foot before Ntuthuko Mchunu powered his way over for the try in the 47th minute.
It was all Connacht after that, and after sustained pressure inside the Stormers’ half, Paul Boyle surged over for his team’s second try.
The Stormers got some breathing space again in the 62nd minute after Feinberg-Mngomezulu showed his magic by weaving through several defenders to score a five-pointer.
However, the Capetonians messed up the restart, and the visitors bounced back almost immediately when the ball was spread to the short side for John Devine to sprint away for a try.
Gilbert missed his conversion, but there were only five points in it with 15 minutes left on the clock.
The visitors then found themselves in front after the Stormers failed to deal with a loose ball after a kick. Shayne Bolton gathered and he fed it to Ben Murphy, who ran in for the score.
Gilbert’s conversion made it a two-point lead.
The killer blow came in the 77th minute when Sean Naughton intercepted Stefan Ungerer’s pass before racing away for Connacht’s fifth try.
Man of the match: The award goes to Connacht scrumhalf Ben Murphy, who was a livewire around the park. He made excellent decisions with ball in hand, and he scored one of his team’s five tries.
The scorers:
For Stormers:
Tries: Roos, Mchunu, Feinberg-Mngomezulu
Cons: Feinberg-Mngomezulu 3
Pen: Feinberg-Mngomezulu
For Connacht:
Tries: Hurley-Langton, Boyle, Devine, Murphy, Naughton
Cons: Gilbert 4
Yellow card: Deon Fourie (Stormers, 5′ – foul play, head-on-head tackle)
Teams:
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Damian Willemse, 13 Ruhan Nel (captain), 12 Dan du Plessis, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Deon Fourie, 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Adré Smith, 3 Zachary Porthen, 2 Scarra Ntubeni, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu.
Replacements: 16 André-Hugo Venter, 17 Oli Kebble, 18 Neethling Fouché, 19 Ruben van Heerden, 20 Marcel Theunissen, 21 Paul de Villiers, 22 Stefan Ungerer, 23 Wandisile Simelane.
Connacht: 15 Sam Gilbert, 14 Harry West, 13 John Devine, 12 Cathal Forde, 11 Shayne Bolton, 10 Sean Naughton, 9 Ben Murphy, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Shamus Hurley-Langton, 6 Cian Prendergast (captain), 5 Darragh Murray, 4 David O’Connor, 3 Sam Illo, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Billy Bohan.
Replacements: 16 Matthew Victory, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Jack Aungier, 19 Josh Murphy, 20 Paul Boyle, 21 Colm Reilly, 22 Jack Carty, 23 Hugh Gavin.
Referee: Federico Vedovelli (Italy)
Assistant referees: Hanru van Rooyen (South Africa), Sean Muller (South Africa)
TMO: Fillipo Russo (Italy)
